“The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’ When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.
Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, ‘What do you want?’ They said, ‘Rabbi’ (which means ‘Teacher’), ‘where are you
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staying?’ ‘Come,’ he replied, ‘and you will see.’ So
they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him.
It was about four in the afternoon.
John 1:35-39

Relationships are hard. It’s even harder with quarantines, Zoom meetings, and text-only encounters. To really get to know someone, we have to spend time with them physically and emotionally. While we may learn something about someone through listening to the stories others tell of them, to really get to know them we have to hear from them directly.

Two of John’s followers in today’s text understood this. They were learning about Jesus through John’s teaching, but when Jesus himself passes by, they are quick to follow him and spend time with him. They were eager to directly interact with the living Word of God. Consider what pastor Adele Calhoun says relating this concept to Scripture for us today, “There are always other books to read and speakers to listen to. Of course, God does use books and people to speak to us. But Scripture is a primary way that the Holy Spirit opens us up to the God who is beyond us.”

We often think that God does not speak to us but we couldn’t be further from the truth. He speaks loudly through the scriptures. When Jesus was in the desert, he relied solely upon God’s word to fully sustain him and protect him. It’s the same word we have in our possession today. Wow!!

Consider these suggestions within the three categories of time, space and content as ways of fostering the practice of being present with the written Word of God:

• Time: a) Read Scripture every day this week at a set time (ex. when you first get up, over your lunch break, before bed, etc.). b) When you read Scripture, set a timer for 15 min. (or more) to avoid feeling like you have to keep an eye on the time if you only have limited time available.
• Space: a) Pick a spot that is mostly free from distraction. b) As you prepare to spend time with the written Word of God, take a few deep breaths. c) Light a candle as a reminder of God’s presence there with you.
• Content: It can be intimidating to sit down with Scripture if you don’t know what to read or how much to read. Try following a reading plan, something that works for you. One good place to start is in the gospels. Consider taking 21 days to read through the gospel of John, a chapter a day.

As you develop this holy time with God, open your heart to the words and to the transformation that comes from abiding in the Word.

“All Scripture is God-breathed” — 2 Tim 3:16a

It is impossible to respond unless there is something to respond to. For instance, you can’t hit “reply” to a message you never received. It’s the same thing when you enter into worship. You can’t respond to God’s Word if His Word is never given. When I was leading worship, I would say to the people after the scripture reading, “This is the Word of God for the people of God.” They would respond, “Thanks be to God.” But what are we really referring to by the Word of God?

Scripture? Yes. But it’s more than that. We are referring to the person of Jesus Christ. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (John 1:1-3).

This Word is how God reveals himself to the world. As John points out, it is how God created the world and, as the rest of the gospel goes on to describe, it is how God reconciles the world to himself. Notice though that the Word in these opening verses feels other-worldly. It does not belong to this world, but is outside of it.

And then John 1:14 is presented to us and it changes everything! “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

The Word became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. He is the Word of God, God’s perfect self- expression. Scripture proclaims and ultimately points to Jesus Christ, God’s personal Word to all. Jesus, as the incarnate Word of God, and Scripture, as the written Word of God pointing to the incarnate, reveal to us who God is and who he has created us to be. While we are not able to see Jesus physically today, we still may know him through the Word of God, our Scripture, as his Spirit speaks in our hearts.

We are invited to respond to the Word in many different ways. But in order to do so, each of us must choose to say, “Yes.” Yes to the Word of God. Yes to salvation. Yes to suffering for the sake of Christ. Yes. Throughout this Lent season I will be making consistent invitations to you to say “Yes” to the Word- maybe for the first time or perhaps a renewal. And when you do, let me know so that your new journey is not one you do alone.

REFLECTION
When have you had a spiritual experience as a result of responding to the Word of God?

Are you ready to say yes?